Mr. Berry was fatally shot on May 29 after being lured to the courtyard of a Cooper Street apartment complex by the defendants under the premise of buying marijuana, spokeswoman Ms. Yvette Jones said.

“Once the men had the victim cornered, they confronted him about a previous shooting that left an acquaintance paralyzed,” Ms. Jones said. “Mr. Berry was implicated in that earlier shooting but not charged as the gunman.”

Following the confrontation with the two men, Mr. Berry attempted to run away.

“The men fired as many as eleven shots, striking the victim three times in his leg, arm and back,” Ms. Jones said.

Mr. Berry ran a short distance, leaving a trail of blood behind him, before he collapsed in the 500 block of nearby Pryor Street, prosecutors said. He died a short a time later at Grady Memorial Hospital.

Mr. Guffie and Mr. Benton were later identified as the shooters through anonymous tips.

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Former police reporter for The State newspaper, Kimathi T. Lewis left her mark in print with stories that evoked community support and a column that helped capture dozens of fugitives. This award-winning reporter with a B.A. in Journalism can be reached at naturekleen@msn.com.